Toy for playing at target-marbles.



' No. 689,054. Patented Dec. l7, I901.

E. BAUER.

TOY FOR PLAYING AT TARGET MABBLES (Application filed May 18, 190;.) (No Model.)

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EDWARD BAUER, OF ALBANY, NEW YORK.

TOY FOR PLAYING AT TARGET-MARBLESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 689,054, dated December 17, 1901. Application filed May 13, 1901. Serial No. 59,993. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD BAUER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Albany, in the county of Albany and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Toy for Playing at Target-Marbles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a toy for playing target-marbles; and it consists of the novel construction and combinations and arrangements of parts and elements hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

The object of my invention is to provide a marble-game toy for playing games of marbles under a new plan and arrangement which is adapted to contribute to the amusement of the players and also adapted to afford them opportunity of exercising their judgment and skillin firing marbles in direction from a fixed base to pockets which have a fixed value in'lines at angles to said base.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan illustrating the field of the target in my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan of a cover of said target. Fig. 3 is a section of said cover when removed. Fig. 4 is a section taken at line 1 in Fig. 1 with cover in place. Fig. 5 is a view of the field removed from its receptacle and illustrating two marbles in pockets, one in place of no value and the other in place in one of value. Fig. 6 is a section of the same, and Fig. 7 is a plan with cover in place.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings, A is the target, having a field consisting of the horizontal floor a a, of any preferred form, although shown to be rectangular. The field of this target comprises several concentric ringform fields (shown to be marked, respectively, 1 2 3) and a central field, (marked 13,) having central in it the deflecting-base C. These ring-form fields are separated by suitable boundary lines 19 b, and their surfaces, respectively, may be colored, if preferred, as illustrated by shade lines and plain surfaces in Figs. 1 and 5. The deflecting-base 0 consists of a suitable vertically-projected piece of any preferred form, yet preferably semispherical, as shown. The fields 1 2 3, respectively, have provided in them one or more pockets 6. The drawings show two pockets in each of said fields. One or more pockets, as e", are provided in the course of each boundary-line I). These pockets e and e in the respective fields and boundary-lines may be increased to two, as shown, orto three or more, as preferred to be employed. Some of these pockets, as E, are marked by some suitable arbitrary character 0 to indicate that they are blank pockets which do not count in the game when the marble lodges in them. These blank pockets I have marked with a cipher, (0,) as at e 6, located in the course of the boundary-lines?) b, yet one or more blank pockets may be located elsewhere in the target for adapting it to' bear pockets of no value as to being a count at the points, if preferred. The pockets e in the body of the respective ring-form fields l 2 3 are termed winning-pockets and have a value as a count of at least one unit, or their respective values may be arbitrarily determined by the players as, say, the pockets in field 1 may count as one in the game and those in field 2 may count as two and those in field 3 as three. In some games, as a game of marbleforfeit or count-forfeit, one or more pockets in the target may be a forfeit-pocket as, say, pocket e-in which may be pocketed a marble, in which case one in the count of the player pocketing the marble loses one in his count or a loss of one in his count at the end of the game.

FF are suitable deflecting-stakes which project vertically from selected. boundarylines has,say,boundary-lineb between fields 2 and 3and are located at points in said line which are respectively midway between a winning-in pocket ein field 2 and awinningpocket 9 in field 3 and serve the purpose of deflecting the marbles rolling on field 2 to a line either to the right or left of these stakes, according to the location of the point of contact of the marble on the stake as delivered to it from the deflecting-base O.

I preferably house this target within a suitable housing-box G, of form corresponding with that of the circumferential form of the target, so that the marbles dropped on this target may be prevented from passing distant away from the same and becominglost. Al-

though this target may be covered by a suitable cover, as cover H, having in it perforation h,and suitably supported above the plane of the field side of the target, yet such cover may be dispensed with when preferred and the marbles may be delivered on the deflecting-base C by aim of the same solely by an eye of the player. Yet I prefer the cover H, having in it the perforation h, located relatively over the deflecting-base C, as shown in Figs. 4 and 7, so that the marbles may be retained within the housing and prevented from .his marble into a selected pocket.

The manner in which this game may be played is as follows: The players-two or 'moremay play with some marbles, using each successively two or more marbles, as may be agreed, or alternately-that is to say, each player dropping a marble one after another all around and then beginning again, each dropping his second marble, and then a third round each dropping his third marble until all the winning-pockets are full or all the blank pockets are filled, when the game will come to an end in that round. The tally having been kept during the play each player will tally his score. Then a second round will be played in like manner and the scores of each will be tallied, and this will continue until some one of the players will tally a total score reaching to the winning-score, which may be any arbitrary number selected-as, say, twenty-five, thirty, fifty, or higher or other number. The players in playing will drop their respective marbles on the deflecting-base in any manner and at any point therein as they in their judgment may select as being the point on said base 0 from which the marble may be deflected best for being delivered in a winning-pocket, and he may drop his marbles from a low elevation on said deflecting-base with design to deliver the marbles into a nearby winning pocket in field l or from a higher elevation for delivering the marble into a winning-pocket in field 2 or from yet higher elevation for delivering it into a winningpocket in a field more distant from said deflecting-base. Should any marble come to a stop on any part of the floor of the target and not enter any one of the pockets of either classes, it may be permitted to remain at such place of stoppage until it be driven into some one of the two classes of pockets or be cornered. Games of forfeits and games of count and other games may be played in which the judgment and skill of the players may be called into exercise for making the deflectingbaseC contribute to the delivery of marbles into selected pockets or driving an opponents marble standing on the floor and out of a pocket into some blank pocket. When each game is played, the marbles will be removed from the target and be used to playa second game, and so on a third, fourth, to the end of the winning score to be made.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. In a marble game the combination with a horizontal target, comprising a central defiecting-base, a series of two or more fields which are concentric to said deflectingbase, boundary-lines separating said fields, of one or more winning-pockets located in the respective fields and forfeit-pockets located on the said boundary-lines and defiective stakes located on a boundary-line which separate adjoining fields as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In a marble game, the combination with a horizontal target, a deflecting-base central in said target, a series of fields concentric to said deflecting-base and provided each with one or more winning-pockets, boundary-lines separating said fields and having located in them respectively, one or more forfeit-pockets, and a series of deflecting-stakes located on a boundary-line which separates adjoin ing fields in which are provided winningpockets, of ahousinginclosing said target and an opening from above said housing and adapted to allow a player to drop a marble on said deflecting-base, as set forth.

3. In a marble game, the combination with a target which comprises a series of concentric fields which respectively are provided with one or more winning-pockets, one or more forfeit-pockets which are located on boundary-lines which separate adjoining fields having in their said winning-pockets, a series of deflecting-stakes suitably located on a boundary-line which separates adjoining fields in which are Winning-pockets, and a deflectingbase which is central in relation to said concentric fields, of a housing inclosing said target and a transparent cover adapted to allow a player to view said target and having in it a perforation which is relatively vertically over said deflecting-base and adapted to permit a marble to be dropped on any preferred point on the said deflecting-base, as and for the purposes set forth.

EDWARD BAUER. Witnesses:

CHARLES SELKIRK, A. SELKIRK, Jr. 

